The Magical Kingdom
by Jingyi
Summary: When the Magical Kingdom is decimated in a war, its young princess and only survivor Haruno Sakura is taken hostage by second prince Uchiha Sasuke and brought back to the War Kingdom where she becomes their prisoner.
1. Chapter 1

If the lonesome traveler were to ask the poor woodcutter how the night at the Magical Kingdom looks like, the woodcutter would gaze up at the sky and give his very normal answer, "You see, that is black silk our queen weaved and sent up to the skies and the stars are shimmering pinheads of bright white light."

But the night tonight was red, not from scarlet fireworks but fire. The War and Magical kingdoms are at war and the cherry blossom trees, their white petals splattered red with blood, are being consumed in the blaze. The soldiers have invaded the Magical Kingdom and its defenses are rapidly waning against the fierce onslaught of the attacking armies lead by Sasuke and Itachi Uchiha, princes of their own kingdom and brothers.

The towering white royal palace seems exceptionally beautiful tonight against a background of hazy red. Sasuke stopped in his steps to admire it, his handsome face expressionless. Roars of victory from Itachi's side of the battle told Sasuke that the Haruno kingdom's ruler had fallen and turning his head back to the palace, Sasuke decided that the time had come for the royal palace to as well.

The castle was empty with everyone, from the butler to the lowly gardener evacuating the palace grounds but still met with their demise as the soldiers charged in. Despaired and devastated by the death of the king, the queen had consumed lethal poison, wanting to follow her beloved in death.

Sakura lay on the cold floor curled up in her mother's side. She covered the light blue of her gown with the deep purple of her mother's skirts and she moved her mother's arms to cradle her own head as Sakura cuddled as close as she could to her mother in a desperate attempt to put some heat back into the cold arms by means of using her own body temperature.

The princess knew that they were at war, and she also knew that her father had died by the enemy's sword and her mother was dying. Her green eyes were shining with unshed tears threatening to fall whenever she tried to imagine how her father died, sorry that he couldn't protect those precious to him and when Sakura pressed the top of her head to her mother's throat and felt the weak tremble of life pulsating give, everything in front of her became a silvery blur as the tears fell.

Sakura never truly knew the woman who gave birth to her. Her mother never spoke and was quiet all the time and she never loved her daughter as she only loved Sakura's father. Sakura loved her mother dearly even though she was always so cold to her, but she was dead now.

Sakura reached for her mother's hand, wanting to will the warmth back in the porcelain white hand but she was stopped abruptly when a strong arm suddenly gripped her upper arm. Sakura was roughly pulled to her feet and then she found herself face to face with the handsome face of Uchiha Sasuke.

'Get in the palace, find the queen and princess and kill them. Although, I would be quite surprised if they haven't got around to killing themselves yet, at the hopelessness of their situation,' Sasuke remembered Itachi's cutting words and his cruel laughter as he gazed down at the dead body of the queen and his onyx eyes drifted over to the empty, crystal bottle, which once contained poison.

Sasuke felt insulted at the way the princess struggled frantically against him to relinquish his hold on her. Surely she didn't think he was weak, after seeing for herself the amount of blood staining his sword and his blood-drenched hands? He had found her concealed behind her mother's death and he would have turned and walked away without knowing she was there if she hadn't been crying at her mother's sad ending and a tear reflected on the necklace she wore. Sasuke tightened his grip on her and he pushed her away from him hard, causing her to stumble.

"You killed my father and mother." Sakura whispered dully. She stood a head shorter than the dark figure clad in black, with the red hands and red sword. Sasuke lifted the arm gripping his sword and he pointed its sharp tip at Sakura's throat. "Yes,' Sasuke said evenly, looking frighteningly passive on his pale and handsome face. "And I am going to kill you too."

Sasuke couldn't help feeling impressed at the girl a little. She did not fear death when their bravest general screamed and squealed like a pathetic swine, pleading shamelessly for his life before Itachi, after finding no amusement in it anymore, easily decapitated him. But the coldness in his eyes returned as he pulled the sword away from her skin to drive it mercilessly through her heart when suddenly he caught sight of a flash of silver too late and a burning fire at his wrist told him that her dagger had drawn blood.

Furious with his carelessness that actually allowed that wench to wound him when his guard was let down, Sasuke clutched his bleeding wrist and looked around wildly for the girl. He saw the elaborate jeweled dagger used to slash his wrist abandoned on the floor, a foolish mistake once he would catch up with her. He turned his head to the left of the room and saw the hem of her skirt quickly whipping out of sight.

Sasuke picked up his sword and immediately gave chase after the princess. He had let her get away and he would never be able to live it down until he had captured her with his own hands and ended her life by his own sword. Sakura was running without knowing where she was going.

Enemy soldiers are charging in wave after wave but Sakura had no idea what awaited her at the topmost towers of the royal palace. Only one thought was etched in her mind as she ran and that was to get away from Sasuke, whom she had a dreadful feeling that he would not let her off for that cut she gave and she was right for he had appeared at the top of the staircase as she was halfway down the corridor and he was catching up.

Sakura screamed when she saw him still quite a distance away from her mere seconds ago when he came up the stairs but now he was so close and getting closer and closer to her still. Sasuke narrowed his eyes locked on his pink-haired prey, who had suddenly slowed down to hop clumsily on the spot and she was reaching down to her foot.

Something solid flew straight in his direction and hit Sasuke on his face. He pressed the back of his hand to his sore cheek where the high heel had hit him and lifted his head to glare angrily at the retreating back of Sakura. The nerve of that girl! She had thrown a shoe at him! Now even more determined to find the girl and avenge the humiliation he had suffered at her hand, Sasuke gave chase after her with fiercer vigor.

Sakura was having a hard time running with one foot bare with the other still wearing the slipper and soon she quickly removed her other slipper from her foot as well. The third time she turned her head around to check, Sasuke was behind her and hot on her bare heels already. The high heel she'd thrown at him had only managed to stall him for a while and he looked murderous.

Really panicking now, Sakura haphazardly flung her other slipper over her shoulder at Sasuke, who blocked it with his sword and crushed it under his foot as he stepped on it after her. Sakura increased her speed even more and went to hide behind a corner, trying not to breathe too heavily for him to discover her. She grabbed a weapon soldiers had dropped and when Sasuke came around, tried to hit him with it but failed.

The stick fell from her limp fingers as Sakura stared straight in front of her over Sasuke's shoulder, her face deathly pale and her chest rising erratically. The silver strand stringing a number of softly glimmering pearls together to form a necklace broke when Sasuke pierced through the string into the wall with the tip of his sword, right beside Sakura's slender and white neck .The sound of pearls falling to the floor sounded strangely loud amidst the noises of battle.

A thin line of blood trickled down the length of her neck. 'Find the princess. Kill her. We do not need any hostages.' Itachi's order resounded in Sasuke's head and in one swift and heavy movement, Sasuke pulled out his sword from being embedded in the wall and was about to pierce through her heart when he stopped abruptly.

The emerald eyes staring at him were angry. They were full of sorrow before when the queen died and then of panic when he was chasing after her and now, the green color of her eyes were practically crackling with unspoken fury as Sakura glared straight into the onyx of his.

Sakura fainted with a sudden and powerful backhand dealt right to the nape of her neck. Sasuke watched as the girl crumple to the floor, unmoving, his hand still suspended in the air from the backhand he just gave her, rendering her unconscious. Sasuke had no idea why he did it when he was given orders to kill her but he decided that when he is giving Itachi a blow-by-blow account of what had happened, he would leave out the part where he was hit by a flying high heel.

A/N: Well, after much deliberation, I finally decided to post this first chapter up. Reviews make my day...!


	2. Chapter 2

When Sakura opened her eyes to a black ceiling instead of an ornate, light gold-colored ceiling with intricate patterns, it immediately came to her realization that this was not her palace. The floor was not of smooth, white marble but it was ground and grimy and dirty and the walls were gray and only pattern on them was thin lines weaving their way around, forming cracks.

The white and gold royal palace had turned into a nightmarish dungeon. Sakura gingerly got to her bare feet and then she lifted the hem of her skirt to look at her feet at the sound of heavy chains when she lifted her foot to find a long, thick chain trailing from her ankle to a seemingly equally heavy padlock in the wall. With that chain, Sakura could go no more than grasp the metal bars blocking her way out with her hands.

Sakura squeezed the metal bars in her hands and turned away. This was the first time she had actually had to put in effort to take steps forward, with the metal chain trailing behind her weighing her down. Sakura tried looking around for something that could aid her but they felt so solid and pure iron in her hands she doubt anything could break the metal bars effortlessly.

The princess gathered up her skirts and walked with much difficulty due to the weight to the bars again. She put her face as close as possible to the gap between two metal bars in an attempt to look outside her cell in the darkness without any light and Sakura screamed in shock and stumbled backwards when a man's face suddenly appeared in front of hers. "Boo," The guard's mouth stank and opened in a wide, lecherous grin.

The princess held captive was so desperate and frightened in her situation and her mind worked non-stop on pondering ways to pull away from this sticky web of brewing trouble ahead that the dirt on her gown was the last thing on her mind. The princess had put away her primness and properness in the face of danger. Sakura realized she was in the hands of the enemy.

It was something rare to have all four members of the entire Uchiha royal household in the royal study room. The King, Uchiha Fugaku sat at his desk with Uchiha Mikoto at his side as his Queen. Their elder and younger sons, Itachi and Sasuke stood before the desk in deep respect for their father. However, Fugaku was not pleased. "Well done, on the decimation of that worthless kingdom." He said with a cold voice.

Fugaku stared with steely black eyes at his two sons and then his cold, hard gaze fell on his younger son. "The presence of a young and beautiful maiden is making our guards excited. I have given my orders to end the lives of everyone in our way. Why have you spared the princess's life, Sasuke?" He asked sternly.

Sasuke remembered the shoes Sakura threw at him and fought to keep his face passive and void of any expression. Itachi glanced at his younger brother out of the corner of his eye. "There were problems, Father." Sasuke answered. The crease in Fugaku's eyebrows showed his dissatisfaction with the answer. "A useless hostage like her is a threat to a ghost kingdom. Where is the wench being held captive in?"

"She is in the dungeons, Fugaku." Mikoto, who had been keeping quiet in the discussion, finally spoke up. Fugaku looked enraged. "For what is the wench still alive for? Her life in our hands now is like a candle flame in a large wind. Snuff it out and be done with it!" He boomed. But Itachi stepped forward with another proposal to offer. "Father, let's be patient and keep her alive for the time being."

"Should any possible survivor of the Haruno Kingdom reveal themselves one day in a foolish attempt to revive their empire, the princess will come in handy." Fugaku nodded approvingly. "You are indeed my son!" He looked at Sasuke to begin giving his next orders. "Sasuke, you shall go down to the dungeons and interrogate her. Get every last speck of information about the royal family from her by all means necessary!"

Sasuke gave a respectful bow, his hand to his heart. "Yes, Father." He inclined his head forward in Mikoto's direction but he never even looked at Itachi once when he exited the room. Sasuke wore a passive expression on his face as he walked. The princess, who had been the first of those pursued to actually manage to delay him by throwing her shoes at him, he wondered how long she could last in the dungeons.

Sakura flattened herself against the wall in an attempt to get the furthest away from the monstrous-looking guard standing at the metal bars, a look of pure terror on her beautiful face. "Don't come in! Remain where you are and don't come in!" She screamed. In her heart was disgust, at how the guard found her screams erotic.

And then, distraction arrived in the form of Uchiha Sasuke, the very last person Sakura would have wanted to run into now. She would bet her life that he will not have forgotten about those high heels she thrown at him and have come to settle scores. The guard threw himself away from the front of her cell and saluted the second prince. Sasuke ignored him and turned dark eyes upon the female, her colors vibrant against the dullness of the gray walls.

"Open the door." Sasuke commanded. The guard, bumbling and nervous, opened the door for him and quickly made himself scarce. Sakura looked with wide, emerald eyes to see if the guard left for real but shrunk back against the wall again when Sasuke entered the cell. Now, both of them were alone in this small space. Sakura eyed him warily. "What do you want?" She burst out.

"Just that tone you take with me is enough reason for me to kill you right here and now." Sasuke said, with a chilling tone enough to freeze the most cold-blooded person in existence. But Sakura tilted her chin defiantly at him. "For someone who didn't have enough skill to dodge a simple knife attack, you sure talk big! Or are you unhappy that you got hit by a shoe?"

Perhaps she had gone too far and foolishly put her own life in danger, Sakura thought as the prince's right arm had, for a fleeting moment, twitched by his side as though itching to draw his sword. Sakura glanced at his sword, lying dormant in its sheath at his hip and then at Sasuke's face.

"You couldn't have come to kill me. Why else did you not do the deed back then when you murdered my parents and must delay till now?" Sakura said carefully, as though she were treading on thin ice. Was that a smile, or a smirk on his lips just now, she thought. "Smart girl," Sasuke said coolly. "I have come to ask you questions and it is not up to you whether you wish to answer or not."

"Your kingdom at its grave now had long-lost tales of a pink diamond, a magical stone that would grant its beholder powers beyond imagination, buried deep within the lands. Where is that diamond's current whereabouts?" Sasuke began his interrogation by the given order of Uchiha Fugaku. "Oh, the pink diamond…" Sakura said softly. She cast a fearful look toward Sasuke. "You promise not to kill me if I tell you what you want to know." Her hand clenched behind her back. "It is…"

Sasuke never knew what hit him next before she finished her sentence but with one hand he wiped dirt off his face and the other hand, he grabbed the slender throat of the princess, who had very cleverly blinded him temporarily with crumbling bits from the walls when he was speaking to her but failed in her second attempt to flee. The look in his eyes was indescribable. Taking her life would be too easy right now. His fingers around her throat flexed.

A/N: A big thank you to everyone out there who's read The Magical Kingdom and reviewed. OKay, so I deleted this chapter that was posted up before, because I discovered some minor errors and I wanted to add an author's note but edit doesn't seem to be working for me? Anyway, here is Chapter 2 over all again and I hope everyone can review again...!


	3. Chapter 3

Sakura choked as his fingers tightened around her throat, gasping for breath the iron grip crushing her windpipe was not allowing through but despite her imminent death staring at her straight in her green eyes, she did not forget to glare at Sasuke

Sakura choked as his fingers tightened around her throat, gasping for breath the iron grip crushing her windpipe was not allowing through but despite her imminent death staring at her straight in her green eyes, she did not forget to glare at Sasuke. She let out a strangled scream as Sasuke single-handedly picked her up with that hand he used to strangle her and threw her bodily across the cell.

White spots danced in front of her vision as her body hit the wall behind her. So much strength was used, that Sakura wouldn't be too surprised if her backbone cracked but the wall did crack. Her legs gave and Sakura collapsed to the ground. Sasuke never moved from his spot, staring at her.

"Your disobedience has saved your pathetic life in strange ways. But you will not die before I get my answers." Sakura glared at him silently from where she couldn't move her body from the pain. "And I will get them by any means necessary." Sasuke threw down a warning as a departing gift and he left with the cell.

"Lock the door!" With Sasuke around, the guard did not dare to try anything funny but the lust returned to his face when the second prince left the gloomy dungeons. She leant her head against the wall. She smoothed her hair back with her palms, her knees to her chest and broke down. Like this, Sakura cried herself to sleep.

_Large emerald eyes gazed in wonder at the pure white pebble in Father's palm. "This is a very pretty, white pebble!" Five-years-old Sakura chirped. Father's gentle hand held the pebble up. It glinted in the pale moonlight. "This is a very special stone, Sakura. You are this kingdom's princess, so one day you will understand its importance and beauty within."_

"_But Father, aren't you going to be King forever?" Sakura could never remember her father's face but his kind smile would remain etched in her memory for ever. "One day, I will no longer be King. But one day, you will become a Queen, and then you, my dear daughter, must remember."_

_The white stone gave off its own shine reflected off the silver orb hanging in the night sky. Sakura, being an inquisitive young child, reached out a small hand to touch the pebble. It felt cold and hard. "On the night the moon turns red, the white stone will finally be the kingdom's magical jewel."_

Sakura jerked awake to the sound of chains clanking loudly and eyed the guard warily, who had came into her cell. The sound of chains clanking was when he was pulling the metal chains off to unlock the door to come in. Sakura slowly moved backwards with every unsteady stagger the guard took towards her. "What do you want? Get out!" She shouted.

The big and burly guard leered at her. "How can you ask me to get out when you are so irresistibly beautiful and alluring?" He slurred. He is drunk, Sakura realized. "Get away from me!" Sakura screamed, dodging as he lung out at her. She gasped when she collided into a solid and warm body but all hopes for a savior were gone when the so-called savior turned out to be Sasuke, again.

"Do not display such disgusting behavior before me again." Sasuke said coldly. Miffed at the interruption again but yet not daring to show the Uchiha Sasuke disrespect, the guard grudgingly left Sasuke and the prisoner alone in the cell after bowing to the second prince. Sakura's shoulders slacked in relief as the guard left, but she tensed up again in the presence of Sasuke.

A morning had passed since the last interrogation and Sasuke would be back daily until he extracted the information out of her. "I do not relish having to repeat myself. Give me the answer I want and you shall be spared." Sakura's green eyes narrowed. She was not going to give it to the enemy that easily. "What information? About what, I forgot." She feigned ignorance. Bad mistake, because Sasuke's eyebrow furrowed and he drew his sword at her throat.

"Defiance will get you nowhere in this kingdom. You understand that you are in enemy territory!" Sasuke raised his voice slightly when he spoke due to anger. But Sakura didn't seem intimidated by him. She had this oddly resigned yet determined look on her face. "I knew that a long time ago, since that swine has tried to lay his unworthy paws on me. But I will not succumb! I will never tell you what you want to know. Kill me and seek all you wish for the answer but you will never find it on the face of this universe!"

This seemed to have the effect Sakura wanted. She was breathing freely and heavily after her speech without a single cut on her skin from the blade on her neck. But Sasuke had great skill and he removed the sword in a swift movement from her throat and sheathed it. "You thought you were extremely efficient in your words. But your declaration just now had loopholes."

"Very well," Sasuke said with a strange air of finality. "If I cannot kill you… It would appear to me that I must take drastic actions to make that stubborn mouth of yours talk." His dark eyes darted to his left. Sakura felt the fear welling up inside her as three men entered the cell. Including that guard who had on countless occasions, tried to rape her and would probably have succeeded with interruption.

"You are despicable!" Sakura spat at him. Sasuke merely blinked. He turned his body around, showing every intention to leave and leave her alone with these dangerous men. "She is a prisoner. Do whatever you want with her." Sakura's emerald eyes widened at his words, thrown casually as though a woman's chastity meant the dirt, or even lower than that, to him and he left.

"Get away from me!" Sakura screamed. Despite her petite build compared to the big-sized guards, the princess managed to trip one with the metal chain connected to her foot, which successfully took it off its padlock in the wall and she threw the heavy padlock at another and knocked him out. For a moment, it seemed freedom was very near, almost in her hands until a large force held back her right ankle and Sakura fell and freedom became far again.

While his comrades were down, the drunk guard from yesterday had caught the metal chain trailing behind her and pulled, causing her to fall. "I owe you thanks for knocking out those two bumbling idiots. Now I can have you all for myself!" Sakura fell painfully on the ground and because she had lost her balance and knocked her head against the metal bars. Fear was the last emotion she felt before her world faded to black.

A/N: Here's Chapter 3 and I love you all!


	4. Chapter 4

A pretty royal purple color filled her vision as Sakura's emerald eyes slowly fluttered open

A pretty royal purple color filled her vision as Sakura's emerald eyes slowly fluttered open. Sakura's long, candy-colored hair fanned out on the pillow behind her head as she stared at the ceiling and blinking dazedly. She had been used to waking up to the four stone walls of her cell that being in an entirely different surrounding when she woke up this morning made her wonder if she was in heaven.

Her body and delicate bone structure was used to a princess's life back in the royal palace before it was razed to the earth. But after her life was thrown into chaos and danger upon the destruction of the Magical Kingdom and she was taken captive by the enemy, Sakura had suffered and her limbs felt battered and weathered in the three days in the dark and gloomy dungeon.

Sakura managed to weakly push herself up to sit up in the comfortable queen-sized bed, her long, pink hair spilling over her bare shoulders like a waterfall as she sat up. She was no longer wearing the sapphire gown she had worn for three days since she was captured, but a peach-colored off-the-shoulder silk nightgown with its sleeves bunched up at her upper arms. A confused expression surfaced on her weary face at the sudden change in the situation.

Yesterday's events slowly came back into memory fragment by fragment and Sakura buried her face in her hands. The worst would have happened, had the Queen herself not been able to arrive in the nick of time to save her from falling into dangerous waters. She decided she could feel thankful to the enemy, for once, before returning to loathing those murderers again.

The door opened soundlessly as the maid entered. Sakura looked questioningly as the maid, looking about the same age as her, walked up to the bed. "You are awake now. The bath is ready, please proceed there with me. The Majesties have required your presence in the royal study and you must be made presentable." The maid had short, black hair and sometimes spoke with a stutter and she had a pair of white eyes Sakura found very familiar but could not quite place her finger on it.

The maid, whose name Sakura was told to be Hinata, dressed Sakura up in a cream-colored gown, which bared her shoulders also and had similar bunched-up sleeves at her upper arms. Hinata tied her long hair up in a simple half-ponytail and Sakura was treated so well in the bath that she wondered if the girl actually knew she was a prisoner here in this palace and not the princess she once was.

"This is the standard procedure here, prisoner!" One of the two armor-clad soldiers standing guard at the doors to the royal study tied a thick rope woven from genuine gold threads around Sakura's wrists in front of her and said gruffly. After going through that procedure to ensure the royal family's safety, Sakura was allowed to enter.

Tension billowed in the study room once Sakura entered. The marks from the metal chain on her ankle had faded within a night and her wounds she'd suffered were gone overnight as well. Fugaku smirked to see Sakura. "You who hold the royal blood of ancient magical lineage, I am impressed." He said coldly. Sakura returned the man a smile colder than ice itself of her own. "Do you desire it?" She mocked.

"A prisoner like you will watch your tongue in this palace." The corner of Fugaku's lip curled up in a cruel smile. "Now that I have seen you in person, I have another reason to keep you alive, other than the whereabouts of that precious jewel, the blood diamond... That coveted ability to heal and be able to heal… I will take your blood and then my kingdom will become invincible!"

Sakura glanced at the Queen sitting serenely at the side out of the corner of her eye and then, casting her aside, turned her attention back to Fugaku again and smiled sickeningly sweetly. "I would rather pour my blood down a drain, than give it to a murderer like you, Your Majesty!" Every word falling from her full lips were dripping with sarcasm. "You wench-"

"Fugaku," Mikoto finally spoke up quietly when she had been keeping silent by the side all the time. "Itachi is waiting outside." Fugaku postponed his anger toward Sakura at the mention of his elder son and Uchiha Itachi walked in. This was the first time Sakura was seeing the first Uchiha prince up close and he and Sasuke bore an uncanny resemblance to each other, except that Itachi was taller and had long, black hair which he tied back in a low ponytail.

"Father, I've come." The expression on his handsome face was that of severity unlike Sasuke, who looked passive. Itachi glanced at the princess out of the corner of his eye as the maid came in to lead her out. The doors slowly swung shut, blocking out the small margin of shoulder and arms her long waterfall of pink hair to her waist did not manage to cover.

"There's a garden!" Sakura had not truly smiled for days since the series of unfortunate events took place and her face split into a wide, delighted grin when she caught sight of the sea of colorful flowers between tall, white pillars and smelt the fragrance as she and Hinata were walking along the corridor to whittle time away. Sakura would never have thought a harsh and strict-looking palace would have such a lovely and quaint garden hidden behind the walls.

"Hinata, do you think we can go into the garden for a while? There won't be any harm done, right?" Without waiting for a reply from the black-haired girl, Sakura happily ran out into the warm sunlight before Hinata could react. "Wait, Sakura- Your Highness!" Sakura turned around, wearing a somewhat wistful smile on her lips. "Hinata, I'm not a princess here anymore. My kingdom's dead. Now I am just a prisoner here, but I won't stay as one for long so just call me Sakura."

The sound of streaming water indicating a fountain nearby lifted Sakura's spirits and she wandered deeper into the garden with Hinata following behind, trying to stop her in vain. Sakura noticed there were no other flowers planted in the garden, except roses in seemingly every color in existence. Sakura had great delight walking past the rose bushes and her smile grew wider with every new color she discovered.

Mikoto heard distinct singing coming from the garden and she gazed out of the window to find their prisoner frolicking happily amongst the rose bushes. A pair of cream-colored high heels lay on the grass as their owner danced around barefooted, not caring if the soil got to her feet or dress. The cream color of her gown added more color to the flowers and her long, pale-colored hair flying in the wind created the illusion of cherry blossom petals floating in the air.

Fugaku had sent the guard to fetch Sakura after he and Itachi were done with their important discussion. Mikoto stood up silently to walk to the window to see more. She noticed that Sakura's presence had made the roses fuller, the red, pink and orange colors of the petals brighter and more vibrant and suddenly, even the water from the fountain seemed to be a even more sparkling blue than usual underneath the golden sunlight.

And then, Sakura entered the room with her hands bound in front of her once again to prevent any attempts of assassination. Mikoto sat down in her chair again, arranging her shawl around her shoulders demurely. Sakura's face had lost her cheerful smiles from just now and her expression now was cold again.

"Tomorrow, I will have the guards show you around the palace. In order to be able to obtain the magic from your blood when it's at its highest and most powerful, I can't have you suffer in the dungeon." Fugaku told her. Sakura smiled that sickeningly sweet smile of hers again. "I will take pleasure in tomorrow, so that one day I will be able to cut my wrist in front of you and have you watch that blood you so desire flow away and waste!" She declared.

A/N: Here's another chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

"Hinata, tell me about this castle and its nobles." By the order by the King yesterday, today the guard was taking Sakura around the palace with Hinata keeping her company. Today, Sakura wore a simple light purple gown with a crumpled design. It exposed her back and shoulders and Sakura wore a dark purple-colored sash tied around her waist trailing down to the hem of her dress and high heels.

"The two most influential nobles are Nara Shikato and Yamanaka Inoichi, the respective heads of the Nara and Yamanaka clan. Nara Shikato's son, Nara Shikamaru is the current Strategist." Sakura lifted her skirt in her hands to walk easier as the guard led them down a winding flight of stairs. "Yamanaka Inoichi has a daughter, Yamanaka Ino, but she is unable to inherit her father's position as Scholar because she is a woman."

The group of people that comes in second to the royal family in terms of power and authority in the War Kingdom are the nobles. Their individual influences over the people are equal and unbiased. The Scholar handled literary affairs in the kingdom while the Strategist was indispensible in devising strategies against enemy kingdoms in wars.

"An ugly kingdom has its ugly rules and restrictions." Sakura wore an unreadable smile on her beautiful face. They were almost done with the tour around the palace. Whether it was on purpose or not, but the guard took she and Hinata down to the dungeons as their last destination.

The guard turned to Sakura with a cruel smirk on his face. "This is the dungeons, where prisoners can never hope to get out of once they have entered. You must be very familiar with this place, I'm sure. After all you had spent three days in here!" The dungeons were dark and gloomy. Its depressed atmosphere still unchanged after Sakura was rescued out three days ago.

Sakura threw a sharp, scathing look at the guard. "Vermin like you shall not speak with me!" The guard looked furious at the tongue-lashing from Sakura, his face red with anger. "Shut your mouth, prisoner!" The princess lifted her head in a proud manner. "Do the silk on my body and freedom to walk around still make me a prisoner?" But then again, the nagging question popped up once again in Sakura's head.

What was she exactly in this palace then, if she wasn't a prisoner wrapped in fine silk and wearing a pretty hairstyle but Sakura saw the Princess of the Magical Kingdom perish in the raging fires along with her kingdom the day she was taken hostage by Uchiha Sasuke. The guard led them out of the dungeon and left Sakura and Hinata at the majestic gates of the palace while he left also to attend to his own duties. Sakura looked longingly at the multi-colored roses under the sunshine as they passed.

Another maid walked up to them as Sakura walked with Hinata trailing behind her and updating her about the War Kingdom. She did not bow when she spoke to Sakura. "The Queen has asked for your presence in the royal study an hour later. Please make your way there before time is up."

"Alright," Sakura nodded slightly to show she had heard the message and the maid went on her way. After the maid left and Sakura and Hinata were alone again, Sakura let the tireness show on her face. "I feel very unwilling." She suddenly said. Hinata looked shocked. "But you cannot defy an order! I will accompany you to the royal study." Hinata looked alarmed and frightened when Sakura expressed unwillingness to go. Laughingly, Sakura decided not to scare the poor girl, who seemed terrified enough anymore and proceeded on her way.

Mikoto turned her head around from gazing serenely outside the window when the ex-princess entered. The princess of the once existing Magical Kingdom carried an air of elegance and quiet arrogance about her as she walked in and every step she took was graceful and announced her presence. Mikoto stepped away from the window. "You do not bow or curtsy in my presence. It is time to learn to show respect to the nobles and royalties in this palace." She said quietly.

"I do not give respect even to the King himself. You are but the Queen of this kingdom. Why should I bend my knees to a murderer's wife?" Sakura said coldly. "However, you have saved me once when I was in danger. Therefore…" The ex-princess lifted up her skirt in her hands and Sakura slid a foot, peeking out slightly underneath the hem of her skirt, back and bent her knees in a graceful, practiced curtsy. "I thank you."

"Do not get too used to this though, because tomorrow, I shall go back to hating this palace and its occupants." Sakura straightened up and the arrogance returned to her face once again. "Why have you summoned me here?" The Queen remained sitting quietly in her chair with her hands in her lap in the face of Sakura's impudence, without a single angry respond.

This was the exact reason why not much of an impression was left on Sakura the first time she and Uchiha Mikoto saw each other face to face in the royal study, unlike her husband's cruelty, which feeds and fuels the princess's hatred for the War Kingdom. Mikoto spoke quietly, "Despite the slight privileges given to you, in this palace you remain our prisoner and must not resist orders of any sort within the palace walls."

"I've realized that my royal identity has changed along with the situation. I'm no longer a princess now." Sakura said with a strange, secret awareness known only to her. Mikoto continued to talk after the princess interrupted for a short while. "Fugaku has given orders to keep you alive in this palace but you may not idle here." The Queen adjusted the satin shawl around her shoulders and turned her head to the side.

"You will be a gardener in this palace. I have seen your abilities that you were born with. Use them to brighten up the palace's garden." When Mikoto turned her head back to look at Sakura, the princess had a quietly infuriated expression on her beautiful face. "I am the princess of the Magical Kingdom! My powers come from the magical elements that were present when I was born. Why should I use them to benefit the kingdom which sent mine to its grave?" Sakura asked angrily.

"Because doing so will guarantee you a safe place to stay in the enemy's palace, where no one may touch you," Mikoto said. Sakura's eyes widened. "You do not have to follow a common gardener's dressing. Use your voice to liven up the garden like you did two days ago. Please start today." After a moment's of letting the words sink in, the princess curtsied again, her green eyes pointed towards the floor in a gesture of respect before she turned around and left the room.

"Then I will come back to serve you at night, Sakura. But didn't you say you will not use your magical powers to benefit the War Kingdom in any way? So why have you decided to do this?" Hinata escorted Sakura to the garden after the ex-princess emerged from the Queen's chambers with intentions to obey the orders given to her and asked. "Because, in this palace…" Sakura faced the garden and started to say.

"So few people are truly kind to me without a dagger hidden in their smiles… Being a gardener may be demeaning to my identity as princess of the Magical Kingdom and using my magical abilities is something I'm very unwilling about, but it has saved me from the dungeons." Sakura ran down the steps into the sunlight and she turned around to smile widely at Hinata. "Besides, my powers are associated with nature. So what's there to be unhappy about?"

Hinata left to carry out her other duties in the palace and Sakura, standing in the midst of Mother Nature itself, surrounded by sweet-smelling roses and the sound of water trickling from the fountain, the rose bushes reached out to the princess with gentle voices that only she could hear.

"_Hello, kind and gentle princess of the Magical Kingdom. It's lovely to see you here again, with us!"_The Red Rose said.

"_We welcome you, beautiful princess!" _The Pink Rose said.

"_It has been a long wait… All of us have missed you!" _The Orange Rose piped up.

"_We hope that in this cold, cruel palace, you will work hard to continue smiling so beautifully." _The Orange, Pink and Red Roses chorused gaily.

A/N: Just finished Harvest Moon DS Cute, and I'm super happy now so here's an update!


	6. Chapter 6

Rumors of a mysterious songbird singing in the palace garden have been circulating around in the palace of recent. But the songbird turned out to be a beautiful songstress. Sasuke learnt from his guards that, two days ago, the Queen had summoned the prisoner to her personal chambers and has allowed her into the gardens. By doing so has elevated Sakura's identity from that of a lowly prisoner's and she is now no longer obliged to return to the dungeons.

His father, Uchiha Fugaku was less than pleased about the arrangement, of course; The King had been hoping to send the ex-princess and lone survivor of the kingdom his armies decimated back to the dungeons where she will suffer in until the magic in her blood reaches its fullest potential and then he will take her blood to create the ultimate, hybrid army of physical strength and magical powers.

For Sasuke, life in the palace was boring when there are no wars to be fought and life was never quiet or without noise with Uzumaki Naruto. There was too little laughter and cheer in Sasuke's childhood. Itachi was the first prince of the War Kingdom and more favored by Fugaku because of his strength and competency and ruthlessness in fighting wars. As the second son and Itachi's younger brother, Sasuke spent his childhood days chasing after Itachi's shadow and desperately trying to earn his father's approval but Itachi was always the better son in their father's eyes.

The first time Sasuke and Naruto met, ten-year-old Sasuke found the blonde boy sitting underneath a snowing night, shivering from the cold in his thin clothes while the young prince was wrapped in fine furs with his attendant towering over him. Uzumaki Naruto was born in a village on the borders with a demon inside him and as a result of that, mother and child were shunned by the villagers for ten years and eventually banished out of the village into the forests where the mother gave up her life to save her child. And then, Sasuke found Naruto next.

It was his sunny disposition and cheerful albeit slightly chattering smile Naruto greeted Sasuke with despite the hardships he had faced early in his life that made Sasuke decide to bring the boy back to the palace with him. And eight long years later, Naruto is Sasuke's best and only friend in the palace, still as noisy as the second day he was brought back to the palace and Naruto decided that Sasuke needed to loosen up and has never stopped chattering noisily every since.

"Naruto, what is the special occasion today that we have to take a long detour off our usual route no matter what?" Sasuke asked grumpily as Naruto hopped about around him hyperactively. On their way to the palace's training grounds, Naruto suddenly decided he wanted to go a different way from the other days and he dragged Sasuke along with him. The path Naruto wanted to walk passes by the gardens and Sasuke hated to walk there.

"I have to see that singing bird!" Naruto answered, a little too loudly in early morning. Sasuke was not a morning person at all, and had no idea where Naruto gets his energy from at this ungodly time of the day. The sunlight streamed in through the spaces between each pillar they walked past. Sasuke lifted his hand to cover his face and winced as a ray of sunlight hit his face and through a gap between his fingers, he saw a lovely sight he would have smiled to see it if his heart wasn't as cold as ice and heard a melodious voice.

"My, my, if it isn't Your Highness…! Adorable Indigo Rose, wherever have you been these past two days?" Today, Sakura wore a light green silk dress in the garden with matching dark green-colored ribbons for shoulder straps and the hem of the skirt swished around her knees as she moved. The princess of the once Magical Kingdom giggled lightly, her hand before her smiling mouth, a cute blush in her cheeks and she lifted the hem of her skirt with another hand as her knees bent slightly in a playful curtsy.

Sasuke watched in mild distaste as the girl weaved her way around the rose bushes barefooted, spinning around gracefully on her feet and dropping curtsies to the flowers around her, oblivious to the people watching her. He hated the way her presence adds shine to the different colors of the roses in the garden.

His dark eyes followed the fluttering ends of her dark green ribbons and long, pink hair trailing behind her. Naruto had been looking on excitedly beside Sasuke and he turned his head around in surprise when Sasuke suddenly walked down the steps and he stepped into the sunlight. "Yellow Rose, you have captured the morning sun's purest light-" Sakura was smiling happily when she was interrupted by a male's voice.

"What are you doing?" The familiar-sounding male voice said coldly. Sakura straightened up and turned around to find herself face to face with Uchiha Sasuke. "Hey, you're the princess they captured, aren't you? Your name is Sakura?" Naruto pointed at her excitedly. Sakura glanced warily at him and she slowly nodded her head. "I am. But who are you?" She soon lost her wariness however, at Naruto's bright smiles.

"Can I call you Sakura? I am Uzumaki Naruto! He's called Sasuke. I think you know who he really is, right?" Naruto loudly and excitedly introduced himself and he pointed at Sasuke next to him. Sakura glanced at Sasuke and nodded her head again. Of course she knew who he was, in the three days he was in charge of interrogating her. It'd be too unbelievable of a joke if she said she didn't. "I'm Sasuke's bodyguard!" Naruto added on eagerly, hoping to leave an impression on the princess.

"…Bodyguard indeed!" Sasuke scoffed. "Three-quarters of the times we sparred with or without the usage of weapons ended with your defeat. What good of a bodyguard are you?" He insulted but Naruto didn't seem too affected by his cruel words. "I'll get you later, you bastard!" He said happily. Sakura giggled a bit at their interesting exchange of insults, causing Sasuke to turn his head to her and the smile to drain off her face, to be replaced by a sour look.

"I repeat, what are you doing?" Sasuke asked again. Sakura glared at him and made an obvious show of rolling her eyes defiantly at him. "You being the second prince, surely you were already aware that just two days ago, the Queen has passed down orders for me to use my abilities in the garden? I heard that the King wasn't too happy about the arrangement though… I wonder why?" Sakura said sarcastically.

Sasuke didn't look like he was about to raise his hand on her to punish her for her rudeness but his voice did drop a couple of degrees colder when he spoke again. "I am fully aware of the Queen's decisions but now, here, I hold the most authority. A common palace gardener is no manner like you. Return to the garden in the appropriate attire and I do not want to hear anymore singing."

Miffed, but unable to retort back due to the fact that Sasuke did hold the most authority here in their midst, Sakura could do nothing to disobey his orders. "What a bad-tempered prince!" She whispered cheekily to the blossoms as she walked out of the garden. In the breeze, the red rose head nodded on its slender stalk as though agreeing with the princess.

Sakura came back to the garden wearing an entirely different outfit from before and her long, pink hair tied in two ponytails. Naruto and the irritable Sasuke were no longer around when she returned. Not allowed to sing, Sakura tended to the garden using manual methods until the sunset cast rays of orange sunlight over the flowers and she looked up, beads of perspiration running down the side of her face, at the persimmon-colored sky.

The rustling sound of leaves which seemed particularly loud in the quiet dusk made Sakura turn her head away from admiring the evening sky and she gazed behind her, where the noise came from. Where there had been nothing before, in the deepest part of the garden Sakura has never set foot to, the leaves have shifted position and they revealed a white gate. The white color stood out especially against the dark green foliage.

Drawn to the white gate like a bee is drawn to nectar, Sakura's long, pink hair flowed with the wind as she made her way in its direction, an expression of curiosity and quiet anticipation on her face. She thought the gate might be locked, but to her surprise, it swung open with a creak when she touched the wood with her fingertips. It was like a thin branch growing out from the tree bough. In the two days Sakura was in the garden, she never realized that this extension to the garden existed.

"Black roses…" Her lips formed the two words in awe, and slight fear of not knowing what to expect from this. Behind the white gate was a sea of black roses, a place so hidden and secret that even the sunlight may not penetrate through the dark foliage. Not a sound disturbed the quietness that seemed too tranquil. If there must be noise, it may very well be the silence itself. The black color of the roses made Sakura think of a bittersweet romance, which ends tragically, and it made her feel uneasy.

In her attempt to communicate with the black roses, Sakura suddenly realized something and her emerald eyes widened in fear. "This place is-" Sakura's hand brushed against the rose bush and she winced as it cut her. She lifted her right hand to see a bead of her blood forming on the back of her hand, like a tiny, red pearl where the rose thorns had pricked the skin and then her world faded to black.

A/N: I haven't forgotten to write... but I keep forgetting to update!


	7. Chapter 7

_Six-year-old Haruno Sakura hid behind her father's leg and blinked large, emerald eyes at the four strangers standing in front of her. There are two adults, one man and one woman and two children, although one was taller than the other. There is no morning in the Magical Kingdom but one 'morning' a week ago, Father announced that the neighboring War Kingdom will be coming to visit and he wanted Sakura to greet their friends together with him "Because Mother hopes that Sakura-chan can make more friends," said Father._

"_Your daughter has grown up. My sons," Uchiha Fugaku gestured towards his two sons with a sweep of his arm. Sakura blinked, following the length of the scary-looking man's arm until she was staring directly at the face of Uchiha Itachi. She felt curious about the striking similarities between the two brothers, even though they weren't twins. Itachi smiled at her, causing Sakura to push her face into her father's pant leg but she continued to observe them with wide eyes._

_The King of the Magical Kingdom gazed down at the top of his daughter's head, which reached nowhere above his knee and laughed. "My friend, your facial expression is too stern!" He said cheerfully. "Sakura-chan, would you like to play with Sasuke-kun over there? He is the same age as you, also six years old." Uchiha Mikoto chuckled at the young girl's obvious fear of the people from the War Kingdom yet with a curiosity about them and gently nudged her son's small hand she held in her smooth one._

_Little Sasuke raised his head to look at his mother's smiling face and he pulled free his hand from his mother's hold and stepped forward. Sasuke held out a single rose in Sakura's face. "I picked this in our garden. I'll give it to you." The red rose nodded its head to the light breeze as though telling Sakura, yes, yes, he did. Sakura accepted the rose and a shy smile spread across her lips. "Thank you." Father grabbed the sullen-looking Uchiha Fugaku around his shoulders and declared happily, "They're going to have beautiful children!"_

_At night, when everyone had fallen asleep, the prince and the princess snuck out to play. Under the cherry tree, Sakura unclenched her hand to reveal a shiny, white pebble on her palm. The white smoothness of the pebble glinted softly under the pale moonlight. "You know, Sasuke-kun? Father told me that, on a special night, this stone will become magical." But the moon tonight was a silver orb hanging in the dark skies. Sasuke lowered his head from staring at the moon with curious eyes to look at her smiling face. "One day, when the white stone turns pink, I'll give it to you."_

Sakura jerked awake in a spasm of excruciating pain she never felt before in her entire life that ravaged her body, in a room she was not familiar with. Eyes as green as grass wide open and staring at the dark-colored ceiling above her and gasping slightly, Sakura quickly noticed that there was another presence in the room with her.

The white hot pain like a flame tongue licking at her unshielded skin affected her body the same way a ripple from a single falling object disrupts a tranquil water's surface and the many ripples following after it destroy the tranquility completely, throwing her body into a state of cutting numbness that had only slowly begun to ebb away with the aid of time. "Where am I? Who are you?" Sakura asked quietly and weakly. The curtains were open and a ray of sunlight fell on her face. Her eyes stung from sudden exposure to light when she had been in the darkness for too long.

Uchiha Itachi moved silently away from the curtains and came to stand by the bedside. "You are in my room. I am the first prince." He said in a quiet monotone. Sakura moved her head slightly on the pillow to look at the handsome face which bore much resemblance to that of Uchiha Sasuke's. "The first prince…?" Sakura murmured. "Have I slept for a very long time?"

"Not long. Only one night," Itachi answered her questions accordingly, not a word lesser or more. "One night…" Another sharp bout of pain ripped though her already worn-out and battered body and Sakura winced. "Why does it hurt so much?" She half-gasped in agony. "The poison in the black rose thorns should have killed you upon touch. The healing factor in your blood prevented your death but the toxic crippled your body."

"You are unable to move your body and you are experiencing numbness in your body right now, am I correct?" Sakura nodded. "But it will not last for long." She mused aloud. "You can expect to make a full recovery, but the healing process will be painful." Sakura would have liked to think that Itachi was warning her of the pain to expect but she could detect no pity, or even malice in his voice. "Those black roses cannot as simple as they look. What are they exactly? Why do the rose thorns hold poison that kills?"

"The black roses are things that were not meant to come into existence, but the human heart was careless." Itachi said, with an air of cool finality about him. Sakura remembered why she had been shocked when she stepped into the garden but Itachi spoke again, "You are a prisoner in this palace, but the situation seems to have changed, no? You are unwell but you may not remain here. Return to your own chambers for today. Do not forget, your position in this palace does not give you the luxury of time to recuperate."

The poison had greatly diminished body movement. The process of purging the poison from her had already begun in her body and the dreadful pain that comes along with it is half-killing Sakura, leaving her exhausted and then the conversation with Uchiha Itachi took nearly the other half remaining.

Sakura could barely go forward two steps without stumbling once, with her legs still numb and Itachi didn't lift a finger to help her. The empty corridor outside was a part of the palace Sakura didn't recognize. The palace tour the guard took her on did not include the floors where the royal family have their chambers as her position was lower than that of a servant girl's and she was not allowed to set foot in there. Footsteps could be heard distinctively walking up the corridor and Sakura turned her head to the side to see Uchiha Sasuke rounding the corner.

Uchiha Sasuke was happy. Not many things could make the human ice cube happy, his father had entrusted to Sasuke an important mission he could have chosen Itachi for and he was going to ensure the success of the mission no matter what. To see a suppressed satisfaction in his handsome face that was always cold and completely void of any emotion was a rare sight but it disappeared all too quickly when Sasuke saw Sakura and a sudden, blinding anger took over his senses and body, before his vision became clouded with rage as well.

She stood in front of the door to Itachi's chambers with her back facing the door, wearing a sleeveless, peach silk nightgown which reached down beyond her knees and her long, tousled pink hair tumbled down her back. Sakura stared at Sasuke as he started walking in her direction with large strides. He seemed to reach her in a second and he grabbed Sakura painfully by her thin shoulders, his face very close to hers.

"Why have you come out of Itachi's room?" He breathed harshly. Sakura was too shocked to speak and had no energy to either. Sasuke's dark eyes were blacker than ever with fury. She had thought to reserve her remaining strength to walk back to her room without fainting and decided that Sasuke could find another person to pick a fight with today but no. "Answer me!" His grip on her upper arms tightened impossibly, his fingernails digging into her flesh as Sasuke persisted in his blind anger and Sakura screamed in pain.

When Sakura screamed, it jolted Sasuke out of his blind anger and his hands flew off her upper arms as though her bare skin was burning to the touch. Sakura fell to the floor once Sasuke released his iron grip on her and gazed up at him, an expression of mingled fear and confusion on her pale face. Sasuke looked visibly shaken by what happened for a split second although his facial expression became fierce again very quickly. "Never go near Itachi again. If I have to draw my sword on you in order for you to listen, I will!"

Sasuke left, leaving his warning and an emotionally confused Sakura on the verge of passing out on the floor in his wake but that was an hour ago, or it could be two hours because Sakura had fallen into a deep sleep in her own bed in her room and knew not of the work of time nor of the events that may have happened in her slumber. Everything may seem peaceful and undisturbed on the surface and Sakura is breathing fitfully but the poison intruding on her pure, magical energy in her body has caused memories to resurface in her in a broken dream sequence.

"_Father, why doesn't Mother ever smile?"_

_If there must be an earliest memory in one's life, the starting memory to other memories, then Sakura's would be that of her mother's beautiful, unsmiling face. Mother was the unsmiling daughter of winter, born from the snow. The winter season was harsh and everything about Sakura's mother was cold._

Uchiha Mikoto reached out a slim, dainty hand and brushed a stray lock of soft pink hair from Sakura's cheek, just like a mother. Upon the feather light touch, Sakura's emerald green eyes fluttered open and she blinked in a way that seemed to be a little dazedly. "The people in this palace seem to have too much time on their hands today." Sakura murmured.

Mikoto continued to stroke her hair, sorting out the tangles in the strands and she tucked the silky strands that have fallen out of her plump ponytails underneath the red ribbon again. "Well, aren't all royalties like that? Your father, he used to be so fun-loving that he often sneaked into the War Kingdom to fish. There was one time he brought you along and almost got killed by our soldiers who thought he was an assassin." The affection in Mikoto's gentle tones when she spoke about the King of the Magical Kingdom made Sakura wonder.

"My father and the King of the War Kingdom, Fugaku Uchiha… they were good friends in the past, right?" Sakura asked. Mikoto nodded. "They were very good friends with each other. Your father had a wild and playful streak in him, while Fugaku was stern and serious every moment of the day. They looked so odd together you could never tell the deep friendship that runs between them."

Sakura inhaled and exhaled softly, her chest rising and settling back. Somewhere, the pain had disappeared from her body completely so now, Sakura was resting while the healing factor in her blood cleansed her body of the negative energy within. "I've slept for a very long time and had a lot of dreams. I dreamt about my mother… she feels like a stranger to me even though she is my biological mother…"

Mikoto continued to listen quietly to Sakura as she spoke about the dreams she had, slightly lost and in a half-dazed state after waking from a long slumber. "I'd longed so much for my mother's gentle smile or approval, I would refuse to do anything if it wasn't for my mother and my father knew…" Sakura said. "He always wanted to protect me."

"Is it the poison inside me that has blurred my senses and dulled my head? I actually mistook the Queen of the War Kingdom for my mother but you… you are really like one." Sakura half-laughed and a lock of pink hair fell over her eyes. Mikoto swept a hand over her forehead. "You are very much like an adorable daughter also." She smiled and said. "Sakura, I would like to give you the beautiful garden, and something else you may ask for. I hope you will accept the gifts."

"Is that so? She spent one whole day and night in the First Prince's personal chambers and the whole palace is in ups and downs over her?" The lady turned her beautiful blonde head slightly to the side as the maid whispered the news in her ear. She raised an eyebrow in a perfect arch. "A lowly being like her actually has this powerful of an influence over people? We shall go give the ex-princess a visit tomorrow, and witness it for ourselves, shall we?

A/N: Chapter 8 should be up tonight.


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